That cost coach Samson Siasia his job and new boss Stephen Keshi has drafted in some old faces - like Yakubu Ayegbeni - and has some new names - like Victor Moses - available as well.

Rwanda's coach Milutin 'Micho' Sredrojevic acknowledges that it will be a hugely difficult task for his side, taking on Nigeria.

"We are playing against giants of African football - wounded lions. They have an iron defence, a very creative midfield and very dangerous attackers," the coach said.

But he said all the pressure would be on Keshi's team to perform.

Cameroon were another former power of African football who were not involved in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.

They go to Guinea-Bissau for the opening match of their attempt to reach the 2013 Nations Cup.

Samuel Eto'o is missing of course, because he is serving a long ban, and there are a whole host of other players who are also absent in the wake of the strike action taken by the national team last year.

Kenya, Uganda's great rivals, have hopes of reasserting themselves on the continental stage after a long-drawn out dispute over who runs football in the country, but their build-up to the home game against Togo on Wednesday has been disrupted by a row over unpaid expenses.

The argument has led to the withdrawal from the squad of the Harambee Stars' top-midfielder McDonald Mariga.

Former champions Egypt - who must also go through qualifying after failing to make it to the 2012 Nations Cup - have had their opening match against Central African Republic delayed until June following the tragedy in Port Said earlier this year.